Securing means



Patented Nov. 18,1930

PATENT OFFICE@ JIRA/nrcan, oE-nosELANn ONTARIO', "OANADAQ AssIGnon 'ro u lvivisznsAI. BUTTON'. FASTENING' @a BUTTON COMPANY; or DETROIT, MICHIGAN, A OORPOILATIONOF MICHIGAN vsecuring pieces of cloth together.

yoverlapping pieces of fabric;

fment of ther fastenerv I. '4 Application filed Junve 11,

This inventionfrelates to snap fastener securing' means and aims to' prov1de'an1 1mproved snap Vfastener means for detachably v The invention may beY readily understood by reference to one illustrative embodiment thereof shown inthe-accompanying drawing.

lln?V said dra-wing: Fig. 1 1s an enlarged section through the elements of a closed snap fastener secured to F ig. 2 is a bottom plan view of the studele`- taken alongl the Lline 2-2 of Fig, V1;

Fig.v 3 isaplan' section through'the closed f along the 'line 3 -3 tion' and because they eliminate the need for expensive button holes,sn ap fasteners are ad- V vantageous for fastening together overl'lappedpieces of' cloth .or theflike, particuvlarly in working clothing and other articles Where ease in fastening or.un fas ten1ng1s.

important or where' fasteningby buttons `or hooks is unsuitablelor eiqiensive;` However,.

the strain which isplaced on the cloth toseparate the snap fastener elements `.(`Whichhave adequate separationl resistance Vfor articles :of clothing .fof'this Oharaeteryfrequently results .in'tearing of the/clothI atthe points of .attachment, due t'o""weakn`esses c reat'edjloyr severingl of the threads "bythe `attaching `Ymeans andato' ir'iade'opuate gripping ofjI the v cloth by theattachingelements.VV lSnapfasf teners have',f therefore, been objectionable notwithstanding their inherent advantages, except for unusually.strong'materials, such as leather. Y y l I The, illustrative snap fastener is herein represented byy inter-fitting stud and."socket elements l0 and V1 1 which maybe separably held," together through vthe action fof aresil for necessary eX SECRING MEANS y r ient element in thefformof a "springk ring 12 lcarried by the socket element. They latterv eleme'nt'consists of a cup-shapedmeinber advantageously pressed from sheet -metal and having an interior groove 13 ad]acent the rim 1 4' ofthe cup in which isloosely held the spring ring 12, Whichfinthis'instanceextends almost, but not quite, around the circumference of thev groove. The base 15 of the socketv` is .formed to present a substantial fabric engaging surface and is pierced to provide a pairof spaced openings separated. by an intervening-attaching bar 16.k In forniingthese openings the metal is not punched free. ofthe fastener base but Ais-curled up insidefthe cup `aroundlthe edges of the opening, asat 17, to stiffen the baseof the socket and'to reinforce and stifljen the bar.v This method `of forming .the bar obviatesthe necessity Y for ,clearing the socket elements of small pieces of scraps of metal which would be present had theopfenings .in the base been formed a true punching operation. l

` Thefstud elementl() comprisesin this in-k 75 stanceacircularbase 18 likewise presenting a substantial fabric engaging surface, 'and a projectingstud 19jof less diameter tha-n the y base.V Thehead20i of the studisrounded in this instance by ,beadingbr curling vinwardly the freeedge 21 of the metal, and formed to an external diameter slightly greater than the diameter of the spring rin'g'l2. VThe depth of the stud is sufficient to permit the head thereof topass the springfringofthe socket elei ment into vvhich'itl is snapped, the'spring ring tting underneaththe head around the ife-Y i duced neck 22 ofthe studfj The groove 13 in the socket is made*suficientlylarger than the normal diameter of the ringtoallow room i pansionv of the ring in'pass-I ing-overthe larger stud head.

The' spring strength of the spring ring12 y and shape-and diameter of. the stud head 20 and neck 22` are designed toy cause the snap f fastener :parts to offer appropriate resistance toV separation. '-.Where the fastener is .de-

signed to holdtogether portions of' acloth.

garment( for example, theresistance to 'sepa-A Y ration. of thestud' andisocket must beat least im) greatenough to withstand the tension (which is sometimes relatively large) exerted in the normal use of the garment.

The base 18 of the stud element is advantageously formed in a separate piece and attached to the stud proper by crimping its flange 23"overth`e projecting flange 24 atthe base of the stud.` A" bar 25`is formed in the stud base, as in the socket base, by piercing the spaced openings 26 by `tools which curl up the metal around the margins of the holes,`

thus providing the bar with up-standing marginal flanges 27 Which substantially reinforce it. The base of the stud is reinforcedin this instance by a series of radial corrugations 28 covering substantially the surface and, base and Servn to` prevent-.distortion of thelbase (and 'possi le loosening of the fastener, element) by theV attaching forces. The base is further reinforced toc-sustain the attaching forces by being arched upwardly to cooperatevvith the radial corrugations thereinto transmit thegripping forces from the center of thel base outwardly to its rim.

The attaching means` comprises in this instance a headed and double pronged fastener' Whose pointedprongs 29` pierce ther-fabric at separated :points Without weakening any part thereof. The fastener' is in this case made of Wire bent intermediate its ends into 'a sort of C-shape vto provide a base 30 finished by ,a cap 31 whose margins are crimped under and `grip` the base and Whose diameter is such as tofprovide a head of substantial size, relative Vto that of the snap fastener base, to present a substantial surface for gripping the fabric.,V After piercing the. fabric the prongs are curled around the snap fastener bar by anupsetting tool or die .which enters the the snap fastener element is secured. This i 'be adequate to withstand the usualpulluponV central portion 32 of the snap fastener ,element, and made. to grip the bar'tightlyby the compression exerted by theY upsetting tools. The tension thus created in the fas-A .,tener prongs by the attaching operation'issufficient'to cause thebasesof stud and socket elements and the cooperating attaching fastener heads tightlyto grip and compress the fabricbetweenf. them. In the drawing the pieces of" fabric ,'33 are shown thus compressed;v but ,the degree` ofcompression neceslsaryto. effectan efficient grip obviously dependssomevvhat on ,-the'character and thickness of the fabric orlayersof lfabric tofwhich grip, isaugmented by the corrugations in the 'fastener elementibase. andshould Abe firm` enough to contribute. substantially` to securing the fastener elem-e111? in place and should Vthe cloth' (which witjlisome snap fasteners maybe relativelystrongg necessary to separate theV fastener elements, -so that in the ordinary case the tendency to displace or shift the fabric between ,the headand base iseectivelyresisted.; nthis connecand stud elements are designed so that their respective central portions 32 are open and accessible to an upsetting tool.

For purposes of decoration or advertisement the outer or top fastener 84 is advantageously provided With-a head 35 larger than that necessary merely for purposes of attachment. In this instance the finishing cap 36 is crimped around adisc 37 piercedby lthe fastener prongs and having a central recess 38 into Which the base 30 of the prongs is pressed. The fastener' prongs either entirely pierce nor partially enlarge already formed openings in the disc so that the disc will grip the prongs tightly, Vas indicated at 89, and thereby seal the interior of the fastener-head against the entrance lof corrosive laundry fluids.

The piercing of the fabric by the attaching prongs 29 not only preserves the integrity of thefabric but avoids any Wrinkling thereof, leaving la smooth surface to be gripped. Since 'its integrity is preserved, thel fabric cannot readily slip between the gripping headsand the ronesthemselves resist an'r .a P o tendency to slip. It is, therefore, dicult, if notJ impossible, for the fabric tobe slit in separating the snap` fastener elements. Such fabric tension as may actually reach the prongs is divided among two. prongs,V thereby further insuring againsty the, development of any slitting stresses.

The4 .qualities above pointed out make available theuse of `the snap fastener principlein those forms of clothingin Whichy it is particularly advantageous, such as childrens rompers and Working-mens clothing".` I-have found Vthat.through theelimination of expensive button holes, fourygarment handlings may beeliminated inV the course of`manufac y ture. This, is` a very important item in the .costk of manufacture because clothingis of a cliaractelrwvhich makes itpartieularly difficult and expensive tohandle in passing throughV thevarious manufacturing operations.

Y In f addition to the direct benefits tov the ,garment manufacturer, the advantages in use ofthe improved snap, fastener are substantial., Ihave discoveredthat the combined, se-

curingaction of spaced"piercingfprongs and the clamping or gripping, action above referred tofprovide avery great 'factor` ofsafety inpfirmnesseaud; durability `of attachment,

particularly as'compared to the force neces.-

saryjto separate `'the fastener elements. The.

- teners Will remain securely attached during andlprovided With radial corrugations jto reinforcethe same,and a headed' and pointed Vfiigvea,.1.647 f the usefulr life of the garment.

Obviously the invention is not limited to the details of the illustrative construction,v

since these may be variously modified." Moreover, it is not indispensable that all features of the invention be used conjointiy, since va-.1 rions features inay'be used in different coinf.

binations and sub-combinations. I

Having described one embodiment offn'iy invention, l claim: Y l

l. A sna i fastener structure comnrisin' in' combination a snap fastener element havinga cloth engaging basepierced' to provide spaced ing marginal flanges `for said bar, said base being corrugated to reinforce the same, and an attaching fastener-having a head and spacedvpointed prongs, saidhead and base being of a size topresent substantial cloth engaging faces, saidfprongs piercing the cloth Without seveiingany part thereof and being bent around the attaching bar under pressure to cause said headandbase tightly to grip opposite sides of thefcloth.H

2. `A snap fastener structure comprising in combination a snap fastener element having' a cloth engaging base 'pierced' to provide.

' spaced openings and an intervening attachopenings beingcurledinvvardly to provide 11p-standing marginal flanges for said bar,

ing bar, the metal displaced to provide said said base being yformed With a series of radial ,Y corrugationsyto' reinforce-the same, and an attaching fastener having a headand spaced pointed prongs, said head and base being of a size to present substantial cloth yengaging faces, said prongs piercing the clothvvithout severing any part thereof and vbeing bent around theattaching bar under pressure to` causesaid head and base tightly to grip opposite sides ofthe cloth. i v

3.` Asnap fastener structure comprising in combination a snap fastener element having a cloth engaging base .pierced to provide an attaching opening, the metal displaced thereby being' curled inwardly to 'provide a Vstiffe ening lflange, said base being provided with .v radial corrugations to reinforce the same, and' a headedv and pointed prong attaching fastener piercing the fabric YWithout severing,- any part thereof and being` upset undertension inside the snap fastener element, the fas tener head and saidbase being. of a size to present substantial cloth engagingfaces and tightly gripping the cloth on` opposite` sides c thereof to hold the Snap rfastener element in combination a snap fastener' element having a cloth engaging vbase' pierced to provide kan attaching opening, the Ametal displaced th'ei'fe-k by being'curled inwardly to provide a stife'n-U snap fastener Velement inplace jk snap fastener structure comprising` ining fllangeysaid base being yarched Einwardly prong attaching fastener piercing" the fabric Without severin g any .part thereof f, andbeing upsetA under-tension I inside the snap fastener element, the fastener head. and said base being ofa sizezto present substantialY cloth engaging and ,tightlyl gripping the; cloth on opposite sides 'thereof Vto hold yelement in place. 3

f 55An snap fastenerstruoture comprisingin cloth engaging base pierced Eto -provide an attaching-opening, the metal displacedltheref` kbv-,Ibeing curled inwardly toprovide a :stiff-V ening flange, said elementconsisting ofastud part-having aA marginal bottom l-angeand a clothengaging faces and tightly grippingfthe feloth, on' opp osite s idesf thereof to h oldjy the 6; Asnap fastener structure comprising in combination a snap fastener element having 'a cloth engaging base pierced-toprovide an attaching opening, the metal displaced Vto provide said opening being curled inwardly" 'to provide an lip-standing marginal flange around said opening, said y'base being provided With a series ofradial corrugationsto reinforce the same, and an attaching fastener having a head and pointed prong, said head andbase being of a size to present substantial vcloth engaging faces, said prong ,piercin the the snap fastener?.

. combination a: snapufastener elemen'tfhaving cloth without'severing any part thereo and being upset under pressure inside said element so'as to engage the edge of said opening and causing said head and base tightly to".

grip opposite sides ofthe cloth.

V7. In combination, snap fastener elements having cooperating interengaging parts', one

of said parts having a cloth engagingbase portion provided with an opening, means for i reinforcing said base including ribs pressedV from said base and extending outwardly from the opening aforesaid, and a cap member co'- operating with said base portion to clampthe cloth therebetweenand havinga k'portion projecting through the cloth andropening in said base portion for rigidly holding the parts i Z 8. vA snap yfastener structure includingtwov spaced clothfengaging members, one being 'a1- f baseand the other a cap'gsaid base'having a in assembled position upon the cloth.

marginal openl returnl bent flange, attaching Ymeans for'said members including a headed` fand dolible pronged fastener formed entirely of wire and having the head thereof secured to and concealed by said cap and having the Y prongs `thereof `extending through and fsecured to said base, and a headed andanged stud element having the 'flange thereof received in and held by the openreturnbent flange of saidbase and havin the head thereof centered with respectt'o t e prongs aforesaid.

spaced `cloth engaging' Imembers of substantially uunifol-m area'for engagement 'with' opthe havingthe' prongs thereofextendingv through and securedftothebase, and a headed and aned istud element of `sheet "metal having thereof being tbnlar in form and 'provided at fthe ieenterthereof fwith an inwardly ex- Vtending fmarginal 7sti-iiening lange Centered withrespet to and =sl'lrrounding the prongs :fifa-regain..

Y, {testiiuoriyfwhe of, Iighave 4'signed -my i name to this specification.

IRA n. Feen.

' @355.gif 'i 5 9. A snap fastener structure including ltwo 

